Chapter 1
Grace Ada Stone
Today was a new day. I could do this. I could do anything.
The mantra’s repetition had become second nature.
I was determined to do it until it sank in.
Levi, my therapist, had encouraged me to write it down, along with other positive sayings or quotes, and have them placed all around the house so I could see and absorb them at every turn.
It had only been about six weeks since I’d escaped, and I still jumped at shadows and thought I saw the devil around every corner.
But I’d escaped.
I’d finally done something I never thought was possible. I was free, and determined to stay that way. Cain would never touch me again.
I repeated the mantra again while I finished getting ready, pulling my strawberry-blonde curls into a neat bun on top of my head.
After getting the all-clear from the doctor and ophthalmologist, I could resume my daily exercise and activities. I could join the self-defense class I’d longed to start. I needed to let them know about both my rib and facial injuries, and I had to avoid getting hit in the face.
Nervous excitement simmered within me now that the time had come for the class I’d been hanging out waiting to start.
It felt like the start of my new life, taking back control, finding out who I was without my family or Cain.
I would get stronger. I would defend myself, take back my life and live it for me, for my sister, and for any other woman beaten down by life.
A rare smile ghosted across my lips as I took in my final appearance in the mirror.
The innocent girl I’d once been was still in there, somewhere, and I would fight to get her back, no matter what.
My determination was growing every day, as was my confidence and strength.
Thanks to Cain’s psychological and emotional control, I’d lost a lot of weight in the last few years, and my face still looked gaunt; haunted.
I hated looking in the mirror and seeing the sunken shadows around my eyes and my too-prominent cheekbones.
The imprints and echoes of Cain, all the scars beneath the surface, lurking out of sight, reflected in my eyes and my appearance.
I was working to heal, but healing took time.
My roommate, Kathleen, poked her head in, startling me out of my musings. “You ready to rock it, girly?” she asked, coming into my room, dressed in similar workout gear of leggings and a long-sleeved top. Her long blonde hair was swept up in her customary ponytail.
“Just about.” I smiled at her. She had grown into a fantastic friend over the last month, as had her twin brother, Kaydence. I was so thankful to her for allowing me to move in as easily as she had. She’d been a lifesaver and allowed me to stay close to the only family I had left.
Indy, my sister’s widower, had recently gotten engaged and moved in with his partner and former physical therapy patient, Sebastian, here in Hope’s Ridge, along with my beautiful niece, Hazel.
When I’d escaped, I’d crashed with them, but I needed my independence and to prove to myself I could stand on my own two feet, and they needed their privacy.
Kath had been happy to oblige, and I was eternally grateful.
“Then let’s go. I’m excited you can join us and learn to kick some ass.” She added a chuckle, her hair bouncing as she moved. “Mal is a brilliant teacher and very nice to look at.” The wink she sent me had me rolling my eyes.
“What? It doesn’t hurt to admire the view,” she teased.
As far as I knew, Kath was single. She was gorgeous, bubbly and athletic, and could have her pick of anyone but seemed to be happy being unattached.
Kath stayed busy running her family’s café, Jolt, with Kaydence.
She devoted her free time to me, her brother, or volunteering as an instructor at the class we were about to attend.
“You talk about him so much, I could almost believe you have a crush on him,” I retorted with a grin.
Her bark of laughter was loud in the small room.
“Ha! No way. He wishes, maybe. My preferences vary greatly from Mal. Although, he has grown into a rather handsome specimen in the last year or so. Finally filled out his too-long limbs with some much-needed muscles.” She sighed, fanning herself and making me giggle.
“Enough about him. Today is all about you breaking free. Let’s go and you can tell me what you think of Mal’s fine form when you meet. ”
She grabbed my hand and dragged me from the room.
We bundled up in our winter gear and headed for her car.
Since arriving in Montana, I had not been prepared for how cold it was.
I thought I’d known cold and snow, growing up in Wyoming, but Montana was something else entirely.
Thankfully, I hadn’t had to deal with a blizzard yet, but I’d been warned I’d likely experience one before the season’s out.
The drive from Hope’s Ridge to the Riverrun Falls community center wasn’t far.
We only had the chance to butcher a few country hits with our off-tune voices before we were turning into the parking lot, laughing as we exited the car.
Hope blossomed in my chest regarding what this next step would mean for me, as I felt lighter and happier than I had in years.
Kath grabbed our duffel bags off the back seat and turned to me. “You ready?” Her ever-present smile still graced her face, but her gaze assessed me.
“Let’s do it.” I spoke with as much confidence as I could muster, as nerves skittered through my gut.
“That’s the spirit.” She beamed at me as we exited the car and walked up the steps.
The community center was a large, multipurpose room that had a raised stage at one end and metal bleachers on either side.
Kath explained it was the school’s basketball court, theater space, and where all the school dances were held.
It had also been important to note that it was the bridge ladies’ bingo parlor on a Tuesday after our class, and trivia madness on a Wednesday.
It was a hub for the local towns and always had something utilizing the space.
And today it was filled with thick foam mats, ready for our self-defense class to begin.
Kath and I placed our bags down on the lowest bleachers and took out our water bottles and towels, placing them next to us as we took our seats on the mats in the semicircle that had formed on our arrival. Kath greeted a few of the women as we waited for the elusive Mal to arrive.
With a quick look at her smartwatch, Kath spoke. “Weird, Mal’s never late. He’s punctual with military precision; I’m surprised he’s not here yet.”
As she finished her sentence, the back door by the stage opened, and a stunning woman with dark hair and a curvaceous body came bounding in, followed by a tall man with a face I’d recognize anywhere.
My body froze, and my limbs locked. How could it be?
The family resemblance was plain as day in his high cheekbones and dark hair.
I hadn’t seen Malachi for years. Not since he left for the military as soon as he turned eighteen.
Now he was here and about to teach me self-defense so I could get stronger and learn to keep myself safe from his own brother.
Well, fiddling fish sticks!
My limbs came back online, along with my fight-or-flight response, as I bolted from the room.
He couldn’t see me; I couldn’t let him know I was here. If he told Cain or my family, they would come for me. I needed to escape.
I ran to the door and pushed out into the Montana sunshine.
The winter chill in the air stole the breath from my lungs, and my cheeks burned from the cold.
I booked it down the side of the community center and into a back alleyway with dumpsters and debris.
I gulped in lungsful of air, my hands braced against the wall, while tears burned my eyes.
Why was he here of all places?
Shouldn’t he still be in the military?
Why couldn’t I just be free to live my life?
My knees gave out, and I crumpled to the muddy ground. I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to breathe and figure out what I was going to do now.
Should I run? Escape? But where could I go? My brother-in-law and niece were here, the only genuine family I had left. I’d only gotten them back; I couldn’t lose them, not again. I wouldn’t.
Standing on shaky legs, I punched the wall and screamed. Letting my anger, my grief, and my fear go. As Levi, Indy, Kath, and the rest of my new family told me, I was stronger than I knew, and now was the time to test that.
With my shoulders set, I turned to confront my past. I wouldn’t let it sucker punch me, not like this, and not here in my new safe place.
I would stand strong and tell Malachi the truth.
He’d never been cruel, like his brother or mine when we were kids.
I hoped he was still the kind and caring man I’d once known.
He needed to know telling his family or mine about me was out of the question.
Turning, ready to face it all, I crashed right into the hard chest of my husband’s older brother and my childhood best friend.